Everton given January transfer window boost by Salomon Rondon exit
Frank Lampard has more scope to improve the Everton squad in January now that Salomon Rondon has left the club, according to Dean Jones.
The Venezuelan agreed to mutually terminate his contract on 16 December after making just seven substitute appearances this season in the Premier League, with five amounting to single figures in minutes.
That was despite turning down a move to the UAE at the end of the summer transfer window in order to fight for his place, and the surprise change of heart has given the manager extra leeway to work with in the January market says ex-Eurosport journalist Jones.
He told GIVEMESPORT (20 December): “Something had to give on that, it just wasn’t helpful to have him.
“He was never available when they needed him really, and now it opens up the amount they can spend on wages to bring in a new figure and help give Lampard a fresh option for January.”
Helping hand
It may not be much but every little helps financially for Everton while they are working their way out from under the huge losses that have mounted in recent seasons.
The writing appeared to be on the wall for Rondon when he had the move to Sharjah FC available around transfer deadline day, since Lampard had chosen not to make him a certain starter despite Dominic Calvert-Lewin being out.
He barely featured since and didn’t find the net, an issue which too many of his teammates have been sharing of late, so would probably have been better off taking the offer at the time.
The goal scoring problem is why it is so important that Lampard, Kevin Thelwell and the rest of the club’s hierarchy have room to manoeuvre in January because they are going to struggle to climb the table without help in that department.
The financial situation is thought to be easing in terms of the threat of sanctions, but the spending power is still not close to the level it was prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Linked to the likes of Marcus Thuram and Jonathan David, a goalscorer is certainly one of the priorities for the winter window, while the club maintains a heavy interest in Mohammed Kudus from Ajax, with all three names likely to mean a greater return on investment than Rondon proved in his time at the club.